The CheckerBoard

Is there a reason you think he's better than Strong, Golden, etc? He's not been a head coach and it's pretty well known that Saban has a big hand in the alabama D, so how can we be sure that Bama's defensive success is his doing and not Sabans?

He's too much of an unknown with me. He may be a great HC some day, but I dont think he's the coach tennessee needs to hire w/o getting several No's first

Completely agree. I like Fisher too, but I'm tired of people that want to vacation with Saban, Muschamp, and everyone else. Smart has no experience coaching and might not even be able to put a good staff together. Would be a terrible hire IMO.

I agree

The better question is what has Strong done that Smart has not and the answer is be the true unquestioned defensive coach of a two time national champion (Meyer was an offensive coach) and lead a team to a BCS bowl in his third year as a head coach, among other things. Smart could very well be a better coach than Strong, but any school hiring this guy is rolling the dice that he can actually call a defense without Saban and that he can lead a team as head coach- two things that Strong has already proven he can do. Comparing Strong to Smart minimizes Strong's accomplishments and attempts to put Smart on the same level of a guy that dwarfs him in terms of achievement- unfair to both.